1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of eyeglass accessories and more specifically relates to an eyeglass tether attachment system.
2. Description of the Related Art
According to the Vision Council of America, two-thirds of the United States population wears prescription glasses, 11% of the population wears readers and 85% of the population wears sunglasses. That equates to approximately 269 million people. Over the last 50 years, the evolution of eyewear has gone from “function to fashion”, and the availability of attractive and fashionable eyewear is greater and more available than ever before. People are choosing eyewear and eyewear accessories as an integral means of expressing their individualism and a medium to accentuate their personalities. This is evidenced by the growing number of people who do not need glasses for corrective purposes but choose to wear eyeglasses as a fashion accessory anyway. From teenagers to baby boomers, people are embracing eyewear as a vehicle for self expression. Eyeglasses are no longer considered just a necessity for the visually impaired, but rather a fashion accessory.
The most popular and convenient way people choose to keep their eyewear handy during their daily activities is to attach their glasses to a decorative necklace, cord or chain worn around the neck. The necklace, cord or chain typically has some type of connector at each end that attaches to each temple piece of the eyeglasses. The connector itself is attached to the ends of the necklace, cord, or chain by either an elastic loop, small metal ring, or some sort of adhesive. Currently, the only connector options available for these necklaces, cords, or chains are alligator clips which were never intended to be very fashionable, or hollow rubber tips that only fit onto the ends of the temple pieces and are not adjustable, or rubber bands that loop over the temple pieces. The most commonly used of these options is the rubber band-like connector. It is threaded through a bead or metal coil that is supposed to aid in adjusting the tension and securing the position of the rubber loop on the temple piece.
The downside of these options is that they are unattractive, uncomfortable, and frequently break. Breakage and slippage is the biggest dilemma associated with these connectors, especially the rubber band loops which are the most commonly used connectors. Trying to adjust the bead or metal coil in order to tighten and better secure the rubber loop onto the temple piece is a tedious and aggravating process. The quality and resilience of these connectors do not often provide an equivalent amount of security for the price paid for the glasses. When these connectors break, the process to replace them is time-consuming and aggravating. These connectors are extremely hard to find as individually sold products. And, if they can be found, most people either don't know how to replace the connector, or they simply don't have the time to “mess with” the tedious process. A solution is desirable.
Various attempts have been made to solve the above-mentioned problems such as those found in U.S. Pat. No. 8,545,011 to Yee Ling Chow, U.S. Pat. No. 8,317,317 to Eric Charles Pulvino, U.S. Pat. No. 8,622,540 to Tracey E. Burnstein, U.S. Pub. No. 2007/0046893 to Patricia Freeman, U.S. Pat. No. 8,366,268 to Ronald Wade Willaims, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,338,158 to Robert Glinert. This art is representative of eyeglass retention devices. None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the invention as claimed.
Ideally, an eyeglass retention device should provide ease of use and security, and yet, would operate reliably and be manufactured at a modest expense. Thus, a need exists for a reliable eyeglass tether attachment system to avoid the above-mentioned problems.